It’s the Solemnity of the Assumption of Our Lady — so that means it’s our birthday. The 15th Station celebrates nine years of podcasting with a show that opens with the shocking story of an elderly French priest’s murder at the hands of cowardly terrorists. As hard as it is to proceed from such horror, the Holy Father’s comments at World Youth Day and some forthright words from a seminary formation director help to refocus on the positivity of the Catholic faith. To show the joy of that faith, the Church needs great witnesses. And Pope Francis wants parish secretaries to be part of that number. Enjoy our birthday show!

It’s hard to believe that it’s six years since The 15th Station sprung into life in a small office in Auckland, but the crew invites SQPN legend Steve Nelson into Rendition Studios to share in the birthday celebration. The remarkable events of World Youth Day in Rio, and the subsequent unremarkable comments on the flight back that generated headlines around the world, dominate this month’s episode. James, Don, Shannon, Steve and Gavin also talk about Lumen Fidei, the joint Francis/Benedict encyclical, a doctor who has an interesting philosophy on prescribing contraceptives and the impending canonisation of Popes John Paul II and John XXIII. Even the light story has an unusually serious discussion. Thanks for listening to this episode, and any of the other 70 shows in this podcast and however many of the other shows in the network. You guys are great.

With the panel down on numbers and an early recording date, it’s a more concise episode of The 15th Station this month as James and Gavin discuss some of the big stories of the month, including Pope Francis’s desire for bishops to be more pastor than prince, the idea of the Church reclaiming the word “matrimony” as marriage is redefined in various jurisdictions and we take a look at the first meeting of arguably the two most important Christian leaders in the world — Pope Francis and the Archbishop of Canterbury. We said “arguably”. Other big stories from the month, including the upcoming canonisations and the new encyclical, will feature in next month’s podcast.

Can atheists get to heaven? Can a group of Catholics call their Catholic group “Catholic”? Can Pope Francis continue his charmed run with the media when he makes his first overseas trip next month? Can Catholics still be members of the Boy Scouts of America? And can someone without any pants parody the Pope? A series of fascinating questions — and some interesting answers — on this month’s episode with James, Helen, Don and Gavin. And if you’re looking for John Allen’s preview (mentioned in the show) of the challenge facing Pope Francis ahead of World Youth Day, you can find it here.

In the May 2013 episode of The 15th Station, James, Helen, Don and Gavin talk about the latest statistics that show the Catholic Church is growing faster than the rate of population growth, and the number of seminarians, priests and bishops is growing with it. Another thing that’s growing is the number of relationships New Zealanders can consider marriage, with the passage of legislation allowing same-sex marriage. Some of the arguments against such moves are outlined in this piece, What is Marriage?, which Don mentions in the show. The panel also discusses Pope Francis’s upcoming trip to South America, the Church’s view on economic matters and the story that’s gone viral — a three-year-old Colombian boy who celebrates Mass.

After talking about pilgrimages in general last week, Bishop Patrick talks this week about a specific pilgrimage: World Youth Day. Started by Pope John Paul II and considered one of the late pontiff’s great legacies, this year’s World Youth Day will be held in Madrid later this month. Bishop Patrick talks about the impact of World Youth Day, his own experiences and upcoming events to celebrate World Youth Day in his own Diocese of Auckland.

Awww….look at our little podcast. One year old already! To celebrate, we have a chat to George about what is was like to be at WYD in Sydney. We also talk about the Bishops on the election, the Lambeth conference and Anglican/Catholic unity, and New Zealand’s apparent journey to a hot unpleasant place in a hand-carried shopping container with the “Boobs on Bikes” parade. We also talk a little about our new upcoming podcasts! What a show!

(Safe travels to all those going to World Youth Day!)
This month, we talk about Clare Dooley from Christchurch having lunch with the Pope, Ken Orr being attacked on YouTube for protecting the lives of the unborn, the Australian bishops apologising and calling lapsed Catholics home, the Society of St Pius X and we answer that question that everyone has always wanted answered…does the Pope wear Prada?
The video we mentioned is at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9JTow-oumY

In this month’s episode we talk about World Youth Day prep (only one month away), the Vatican’s Instruction on obedience, the pros and cons of clerical dress, and Fr.Michael Pfleger’s outburst against Hillary Clinton.
Links talked about in the show:
– 4,000 Kiwis going to WYD (http://wyd.org.nz/?sid=236)
– Vatican gives guidance on obedience for religious (http://www.zenit.org/article-22716?l=english)
– Being Frank discussion on clerical dress (http://www.beingfrank.co.nz/?p=717)
– Fr.Michael Pfleger and Hillary (http://www.catholic.org/politics/story.php?id=28097)

Our first Christmas podcast and there’s quite a bit to talk about. The Pope’s new encyclical on hope has been released, and it makes for popular reading. We talk about the 4,210 NZ pilgrims are heading over to see him next year at World Youth Day, and whether or not movies like the Golden Compass can be bad for the faith of those who watch them. And we talk a bit about Christmas traditions and interpretations of the season. We wish all our listeners a happy and Holy Christmas.

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The 15th Station is our active monthly news podcast. We get a panel of Kiwi Catholics together to provide a Catholic perspective on the news and current events of the month.

Catechiwi is our archived catechesis podcast where we get a guest theologian from around the country or the world to speak on an aspect of the Catholic Faith.

Ignition leverages our partnerships with organisations like Hearts Aflame to provide a back catalogue of amazing lectures and talks from international speakers. We divide these talks up into multi-part podcasts.